A petition started by several former University of Massachusetts football players has accused Minutemen coach Charley Molnar and his staff of mistreating his players and made a plea for an improvement in the quality of the program, which moved up to the Football Bowl Subdivision last year.

Pointing to the large number of players that left the program after last season and also citing conversations with current players, the petition said, “It’s time we had a collective voice on this issue to help institute change and bring awareness to how the program is being run.”

The petition, initially posted on the UMass Football Alumni private Facebook page, included YouTube footage from a 2012 winter conditioning session, which showed players wrestling and boxing each other as teammates circled around to watch.